A few tips I find helpful for planning mileage runs:

To maximize mileage, I usually opt to look for short, short flights for the 500 min. mileage, and I opt for more out-of-the-way connections instead of multiple stops-- consider SAN-EWR-FLL-TPA on CO and don't bother with IAH or CLE-- that's about the max mileage you can get on a double connection within rules of the routing. WR is the out-of-the-way single connection, and the FLL-TPA is a short add-on 500. CLE and IAH, since they are semi-on the way, don't add as much mileage as the single EWR does.

Example: flying NW and CO SAN-MSP-DTW-EWR is only marginally longer than going nonstop, but the connections add a few hours of down time. By the same token, flying to the coast may not give you as many miles as flying back inland: SAN-EWR-PIT is longer than SAN-CLE-EWR. In my case, I can earn over 2600 miles on a SFO-IAH-MSP single connection-- that's more mileage than a SAN-CLE-EWR, and my destination is only half way across the country.

Also, be careful that your routing is allowed on the lower fares. NW would happily sellme a ticket MSP-MEM-DTW, but if they break the fare in Memphis, then I'm losing out overall. The SAN-EWR-FLL is a valid routing that does offer lots of miles.

Make the most out of flaws in the airlines' route network. Say Northwest offers Labor Day fares of $118 RT between cities less than 500 miles apart. I call Northwest looking for the most direct flights they offer from Cedar Rapids, IA to Little Rock, AR. CID is only served by the MSP hub; LIT is only served from MEM. So, the "most direct" connection is CID-MSP-MEM-LIT-- 6 segments RT for $118, and you don't have to struggle for that routing since it's their most direct-- and they won't want to send you to TWA.

My favorite simple super-mileage trip was MSP-Winnipeg Canada over Memorial Day a few years back. Nonstop distance is like 400 miles, and when NW put it on sale for $88 round trip, other airlines matched. What did I do: I made a single call to Air Canada. I earned triple Continental miles for the about 750 mile MSP-Toronto nonstop, then about 1000 miles for Toronto-Winnipeg, on top of my 100% elite bonus. Total earned mileage was 10,000 miles on a single connection to a city 400 miles away. Sure, the international taxes doubled the fare but it was still good overall. The trip didn't help too much toward elite, but miles-for-dollars, it was good. And easy!

I should say that these tips are generally for people going for elite by mileage, and not by segments.

[This message has been edited by Viajero Joven (edited 09-23-2000).]